In the mid-1980s and early-1990s, Jennifer Lopez was still getting her acting career started. She made her debut with a small role in My Little Girl (1986), followed by several appearances in television – such as In Living Color (1991-93), Second Chances (1993), Hotel Malibu (1994), and South Central (1994).
In 1995, she earned a role in her first major film – Money Train – and followed that up with roles in Jack (1996) and Blood and Wine (1997). These roles put her on the map more than ever before, but the films didn’t do very well and mostly received negative reviews. Still, it led to what would be her breakout role.
That role came in 1997 when she portrayed Selena Quintanilla-Pérez in Selena, a biopic about the late singer’s life and death. From that point on, Jennifer Lopez became one of Hollywood’s most successful and highest-earning actresses of all time – to go along with an equally-successful singing career.
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For those that have followed Jennifer Lopez throughout her illustrious and iconic career, her role in Selena – and, therefore, the story of Selena Quintanilla-Pérez – is nothing new. Her 14-year-old twins, Emme and Max, however, they were completely oblivious to it all. That is, of course, until they watched it recently.
J-Lo revealed as much in an interview with TODAY, which was published on January 16. She expressed how surprised she was by her children’s reaction to the movie – more so the ending, which portrays the singer’s death. It caught her children off guard, much like it caught the rest of the world off guard in 1995.
“It was kind of sweet. Because I don’t think they realized that she passed away. And so, at the end of the movie, they were like, ‘Nooooooooooo!’ said Jennifer Lopez in the interview. It wasn’t the reaction J-Lo expected, but then again she never gave them a warning. “I was like, ‘Oh, my God, I thought you knew!’”
Selena, often touted as the ‘Queen of Tejano Music,’ rose to prominence throughout the 1980s and into the 1990s. In 1995, her father confronted the president of her fan club, Yolanda Saldívar, about the evidence she embezzled money from the fan club. On March 31, 1995, Saldivar murdered Selena with a revolver.
Jennifer Lopez Talks About Her ‘Phenomenal’ 2022
Jennifer Lopez also opened up about the ‘phenomenal’ year she had in 2022, which saw her life change in the blink of an eye. It all started in April 2021, when she reconciled with actor Ben Affleck – the two were previously engaged in 2002 but ended it in 2004 before getting back together 17 years later.
Then came April 8, 2022, when the couple announced their second engagement – a mere two decades since the first one. The only difference with this one was that they were serious this time. They tied the knot on July 16, 2022. In doing so, Lopez also became a stepmother to Affleck’s three children.
“We moved in together; the kids moved in together. So it’s been a really kind of emotional transition. But at the same time, all your dreams coming true, and it’s just been a phenomenal year,” said Lopez to TODAY – calling it the ‘best year I think since my kids were born.’ You can tell she’s at peace right now.
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Jennifer Lopez gave birth to her fraternal twins in February 2008 to her then-husband Marc Anthony – the two were married for 10 years between 2004 and 2014, though they initially separated in 2011. While we don’t expect Lopez and Affleck to add any more kids to their household, I guess you never really know.
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